


The Hand of Fate

by TheUnicornFountain



Category: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild sequel
Genre: Breath of the Wild 2, Breath of the Wild Sequel Trailer, Gen, Potential Spoilers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-13
Updated: 2019-12-08
Packaged: 2020-05-07 04:47:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,796
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19202197
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheUnicornFountain/pseuds/TheUnicornFountain
Summary: A new trailer for theBreath of the Wildsequel has inspired me to write a short fanfiction surrounding the events depicted in said trailer. Projected to be about three or four chapters.Plagued by dreams of a growing evil and the knowledge that Calamity Ganon could one day rise again, Zelda and her faithful knight Link set out to Gerudo Town to seek a solution on how to end the cycle of evil's rebirth for good. What they learn of the past there sends them on a journey to Hyrule's buried truth.





	1. A Cold Night's Sleep

### Chapter One: A Cold Night’s Sleep

It wasn’t the chill of the desert night that pulled Zelda out of her sleep with such abruptness. The inn at Kara Kara Bazaar was well-insulated; it couldn’t make money if it wasn’t, even if it was the only hospitable place on the route to Gerudo Town. Zelda took in the thick, ornamented walls of the guest room while she shook off the last of the shivers in her spine. The dream again. It had grown clearer with each day journeyed closer to the Gerudo Desert. Now surrounded by the unforgiving landscape, the images that haunted her sleep took on frightening clarity.

Zelda raised a hand to tuck her hair behind her ears, only to remember she had shorn her goldenrod locks before embarking on the journey. But muscle memory persisted, and her fingers passed through empty air. She shook her head in in a gesture of amused self-consciousness before turning to Link’s bed. She hoped she hadn’t woken him.

The bed was empty. There were signs it was slept in, and upon pressing a hand to the crumpled blankets Zelda felt lingering body warmth. She grabbed her dressing gown from off a chair where it hung like a limp ghost and, pulling it on, walked down the hall to the inn’s tavern. The light of a lamp from within glowed against the dark walls, guiding her to the entranceway. Zelda stopped, leaned against the doorframe, and studied Link’s hunched profile at the center table. “Are you all right?” she asked.

Link’s eyes were fixed on the mug wrapped in his hands. A faint frown line spread across his forehead. When he didn’t answer, Zelda pressed, “Bad dreams again?”

The frown line deepened, and Link stood up from the table. He made to walk past Zelda, back to their room, but she stepped into his path with arms crossed and a frown of her own. “I thought we were past this, Link. You don’t have to keep up the stoic knight act. If something’s wrong, I want you to tell me.”

“I’m fine, your majesty,” Link assured her. He shifted to the right, and Zelda mirrored him. Link stood his ground, but his shoulders sagged in resignation. 

“Enough with the formalities,” Zelda said with too much bite in her voice. She was tired, and her nightmare still had her on edge. She shook her head and took a deep breath. “I’m sorry,” she continued in a softer voice. “I’m having bad dreams too, remember? If you need someone to talk to, I’m here. You don’t have to shoulder everything alone anymore, Link.”

In a rare moment of loquacity Link unstuck his stubborn tongue and said, “That’s what I’m worried about. You’re too eager to shoulder it with me. I’m supposed to protect you – I made an oath – but you’re not making it easy with this wild cucco chase. Don’t you remember what happened the last time you wandered out here?”

“You protected me, as I recall,” Zelda answered promptly, which quieted Link. “I’m not the foolish princess I was a hundred years ago, Link,” she continued, “and this isn’t a wild cucco chase. You and I both know the root of Ganon’s evil needs to be snuffed out for good – we can’t just sweep the problem under the castle like our ancestors did. I’ve done the research that’s led us here. Do you trust me enough to continue to stand by my side?”

Zelda watched the counterarguments rise and fall in Link’s throat. Finally, he gulped back the last one and answered with a stiff nod. Zelda relaxed and offered him a smile. “Thank you,” she said. A quiet few seconds passed between them before she spoke up again. “Shall we try and get some sleep? We still have half a day’s journey in this heat before we reach Gerudo Town. We’ll need all our strength for that – unless there’s some mighty porgy hiding in this sand to give us a boost?”

“No porgy,” Link said. “Plenty of moldugas, though. I could cook us up a mean elixir with some of their guts.”

Zelda pulled a disgusted face. “I’ll pass,” she said, and she was cheered when this drew a laugh from Link – a small one, but a laugh nonetheless. She relaxed her knotted arms and offered him an open hand. “Let’s get some rest.”

Link looked down at the hand and almost at once averted his eyes. The stoicism returned in a flash – as if he was ashamed to show emotion. But Zelda had witnessed Link interact with people with such ease all along their journey to the desert… She was the only exception. Zelda dropped her hand and turned back into the dark hallway, knowing Link would refuse to go ahead of her unless there was danger. She vanished into the shadows, and after taking a few steps she heard Link pick up his walk behind her.


	2. Hard Truths

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zelda and Link reach Gerudo Town where Chieftess Riju presents them with a choice.

### Chapter Two: Hard Choices

They were to get an early start in the morning to avoid the worst of the day’s heat. Zelda woke early, but Link woke even earlier. She found him outside waiting for her by the oasis’s pool, although she didn’t spot him at first.

“What _are_ you wearing?” Zelda blurted out the moment she recognized the blue eyes over the veil. Link was dressed in traditional Gerudo vai clothing; he even had the Gerudo stance down. The fact that he looked comfortable in the clothes was what threatened to pull a laugh out of Zelda. It was obvious this was a disguise he had adopted often. 

Link rolled his eyes at the clear amusement in Zelda’s face and dropped a hand to a cocked hip. “How else do you expect me to accompany you into Gerudo Town?" he asked. "Hero or not, no voe is allowed within those walls.”

“I’m more than capable of going alone,” Zelda pointed out, at which Link narrowed his eyes. “I’m only offering,” she continued before he could grow testy, “in case you were uncomfortable.”

Link’s eyes shifted to a relaxed expression. “I’m fine, Your Majesty,” he assured her. He sounded far more truthful this time than he had last night. He bent down and picked up the rucksack that sat by his legs. “We should go. It will only get hotter.”

The second half of the journey to Gerudo Town was made in silence. Both the heat and Link’s reluctance for conversation dissuaded any talk, as well as the fact that Link continued to maintain several feet of distance between himself and Zelda. Like many times before, Zelda wondered what he was thinking as he followed her. His loyalty was unquestionable, but was it merely out of obligation to the royal family? Or the duty thrust upon him by the Master Sword on his back? If they had met under different circumstances without fate forcing them together, would they have been better friends?

On the hazy horizon, Gerudo Town drew closer. It emerged from behind the waves of heat, growing clearer with every other step, until finally the Gerudo text above the entryway could be read. The guards standing to either side of the entrance waved through Zelda and her vai companion, and they made their way to Chieftess Riju’s throne room. The room offered an open view of the surrounding desert, but a stone roof provided cool shade. 

Riju spread her hands towards her guests after their arrival was announced. “It’s so good to see you again, Princess Zelda,” she said before correcting herself almost at once. “I’m sorry, I mean _Queen_ Zelda.”

“Princess is fine, Your Chieftess,” Zelda assured her. “I’ve been too busy for an official coronation, after all. Only Link bothers sticking to formalities no matter how much I insist otherwise.”

Riju nodded in acquiesce. Although she had met Zelda only once before, after Calamity Ganon’s defeat, the two young women already had an understanding and friendship between them. “Then princess it shall be. And Link, I see you’re doing well. Those vai clothes still suit you.” She smiled at Link before growing serious. “The letter you sent ahead of your arrival suggested your visit isn’t for leisure. Please, tell me why you’ve come seeking my counsel and I’ll do my best to help.”

Zelda straightened her shoulders so as to not give away the fear that rose in her when her recent nightmares came to mind. “I’ll get right to it, Your Chieftess. I fear our efforts to rid Hyrule of Calamity Ganon weren’t enough.” Riju frowned, but said nothing. “While we succeeded in defeating the beast that took form, I believe the root of its evil still festers below Hyrule Castle. Link and I… We’ve been having dreams. In them, a voice calls to us from the bowels of the earth. Its words aren’t clear, but the evil surrounding them is unmistakable. It’s almost as if something is challenging us to find it and face it.”

Riju was at ease in her throne, but now she sat up and dropped tense hands into her lap. “That sounds troubling. But surely you won’t fall into such an obvious trap.” Riju noticed Link’s eyes narrow as they shot Zelda a sidelong glance. “No, of course you want to seek it out. Your bloodline compels you.”

“This isn’t over,” Zelda continued with growing fervor. “How can I expect to do right by Hyrule and go about restoring it when I know there’s still evil in my kingdom? To ignore such obvious signs is willful ignorance.”

“Evil has risen in Hyrule time and time again,” Riju agreed with a small sigh. “But that doesn’t mean it will rise again this generation – or even the next.”

“So I’m to play dumb and pray this evil remains underground?” Zelda countered with a rising blush in her face. “Rebuild Hyrule on a rotting foundation and hope it doesn’t swallow us all? What of those future generations who will have to face this evil unaware because we didn’t make sure it was destroyed for good? I won’t have that on my conscience. I won’t leave Hyrule to an uncertain future.”

“But you are at even more of a disadvantage now,” Riju said. “The Champions are moved on. Their Divine Beasts lay dormant. All you have is one knight – and while his courage is immeasurable, he is still only a voe with a sword.”

“I have the power of the Triforce,” Zelda reminded Riju, and she pressed her right hand to her breast. “And you have seen what Link can do with only a sword. Naboris and the other three Divine Beasts were freed of Ganon’s grip thanks to his efforts.”

“But you knew your enemy then. This time you have only a dream to go off of. Are you even sure this is Ganon you’re sensing and not a new foe?” Riju noticed Link shift on his feet, and she asked, “Something to add, Champion?”

Zelda turned to Link, and he focused on Riju to avoid her accusing look. “In my dreams, it feels like Ganon. But… it also feels like something else. _Someone_ else.”

Zelda relaxed. So he had felt it, too. She looked to Riju as well, nodding. “I sensed the same. It’s what led me to research Calamity Ganon’s past. Most of the library survived the fiend’s assault, and I found records of past evils that suggested Ganon is but one repeated manifestation of the same entity. The form of a man – a voe – is another.”

Riju stiffened in her seat and raised her chin in a haughty gesture. “If you’ve come here suggesting I’m hiding Ganon under my skirts –”

“Not at all, Your Chieftess!” Zelda cut in, and indeed she looked horrified by the thought. “I’ve only come seeking advice. Castle records indicate Ganon once infiltrated the castle under the guise of a Gerudo voe by the name of Ganondorf. The wording made it sound as if the attack was unexpected, but details beyond that are sparse and I can’t find any more information in the surviving texts. But is it too much of a stretch to assume an unexpected attack could come from underground? Just like the voice in our dreams.”

Riju didn’t relax, and her words were clipped when she spoke. “Before its rise a hundred years ago, Calamity Ganon was sealed by your people ten _thousand_ years ago. Even a Gerudo can’t live that long. I’m sorry, Princess Zelda, but I don’t think you’ll find any answers here. My people have lived in peace alongside Hyrule for generations. I won’t have our livelihood threatened by your suggestion that Hyrule’s troubles originated here. Word gets around, and we would be seen as outsiders once more. It was only the unifying threat of Calamity Ganon ten thousand years ago that allowed us to re-forge a bond with Hyrule. Anything short of another calamity would fail to repair any broken ties.”

“Another calamity could very well be what we have here!” Zelda said. “Urbosa would agree with me if she was here—”

“She is not,” Riju cut in, her tone colder than the desert night. “And even if she was, I am chieftess of this tribe. My word is law here – or have you forgotten that it is only by my grace the voe at your side can step foot into this town?”

Zelda fell into a stormy silence. She knew she and Link should go; cut their losses before she said something to break the budding friendship she had with Riju. Yet what the chieftess had said snagged at her, and she recalled something from her research. “I’ve always wondered,” she began in a calmer voice, “why are men—voe—barred from Gerudo Town? The Gerudo are not forbidden to marry, after all. In fact, isn’t it true that a Gerudo male is born every hundred years? Is he not raised as a king? My research indicated that much. However, it also showed records of Gerudo chieftesses going back thousands of years with no king to break the chain. Ten thousand years, in fact.”

Zelda waited. She watched Riju try and hide her emotions behind indifference, but she could see the chieftess’s hands curl around the armrests of her throne. She saw the taut muscles in Riju’s crossed legs. They relaxed only a little when she uncrossed them and stood up. Her guards snapped to attention when she barked, “Prepare a bullbo with travelling supplies for the princess and her knight. How long did it take you to get here, Your Majesty?”

“I, uh…” The sudden shift in topic caught Zelda off-guard. She found herself fumbling over the memories of her and Link’s journey; the days blending together so much she couldn’t separate them, let alone count them. 

“Four days – the first three on horseback, and the last on foot when we crossed the desert,” Link answered. “We traveled light, however.”

Zelda remembered now. Link had impressed her with his skills in foraging and hunting. They had only needed to carry tents and a few essentials in case of an emergency that fortunately never happened. 

Riju nodded. “You will be traveling heavier this time. There won’t be game or many resources on the path you’ll be taking.” To her guards she said, “Gather enough rations for a two-week journey. That should be enough for the round trip even if they run into trouble.”

“Round trip? Trouble?” Zelda repeated to no one. “I don’t understand, Chieftess Riju.”

Riju turned to her once the guards had hurried off to fulfill their orders. “I’m helping you, of course, because the alternative is to allow you to sully our tribe’s history. Stand here and spout the Gerudian history you learned from your Hylian books and scrolls all you want. It won’t change what actually happened. I will give you the opportunity to learn a hidden truth – and possibly find the answer to your nightmares along the way. If you’d rather not…” She stepped down from the dais upon which her throne sat. “If you’d rather go on pretending what you learned is all there is to both of our people’s history, I wouldn’t blame you. It’s a much nicer version of events. But Hyrule was built on blood-stained ground, and no one knows that better than the Gerudo. We can’t forget, even if the truth is buried, but we can forgive. I would forgive your words today, I would forgive you wasting my time with your lectures on my people’s culture, and I would help you to rebuild Hyrule.”

“But you won’t forget,” Zelda said, repeating Riju’s words. “And that will always be between us.”

Riju stood only a few feet from Zelda now. She nodded. “You and Lady Urbosa were very close. Much of that was due to her friendship with your mother, but I know from her writings that she thought of you as a daughter. It is only out of respect for Lady Urbosa’s sacrifice that I didn’t throw you and Link out the moment you questioned my motives. If you want to rebuild Hyrule, you must first rebuild the ties that hold it together. Refuse this opportunity to learn, and watch the ties between us fray from the tension.”

The knowledge that Urbosa had thought so highly of her had brought tears to Zelda’s eyes. She wiped them away and managed a small smile. “As anyone would tell you, I’m always eager to learn—much to everyone’s chagrin a hundred years ago. Link probably lost count of the number of times I gave him the slip. Still, he caught up to me every time.”

Riju smiled, too, and her stance relaxed. “You’re lucky to have a loyal Champion at your side.”

“That is one lesson I learned almost too late,” Zelda said. “I won’t make that same mistake this time. But, you mentioned our nightmares… Riju, where are you sending us?”

The smile faded from Riju’s lips, and her face grew tight. “You suggested an underground attack earlier. You were on the right track. There is a natural cave system that runs under half of Hyrule. The entrance is by the eastern edge of the desert.” 

Zelda heard Link suck in a small breath beside her. She turned to him and saw understanding dawn on his face. “We’re going to the castle.”

Riju nodded. “It was coincidence—or perhaps fate—that Hyrule Castle was built over the other end of the caves. A Gerudo king once used the path to launch an attack on Hyrule. He was thwarted by members of his own tribe who warned the king and queen. The Gerudo was killed only a few hundred yards from his goal, but while his body wasted away his lingering malice grew and festered beneath the castle. Some fifty years later Calamity Ganon rose for the first time. By then a new king had taken the Gerudo throne, and… well…” Here, Riju shook her head. “You’ll find out. The truth is written on the walls of the caverns. You’ll have plenty of time to study them along your journey.” She took in a deep breath. “I only hope I’m doing the right thing by showing you the way. I would never forgive myself if my desire to validate my people sparks the terrible fate your nightmares are suggesting.”

Zelda reached out and took hold of Riju’s hands. “Even if it does, we’ll face that fate together,” she promised. 

Riju squeezed back. “Queen Zelda, I—”

“ _Princess,_ ” Zelda insisted.

Riju shook her head. “I apologize for treating you so poorly just now.”

“Nonsense,” Zelda assured her. “You’re growing into a fine chieftess. Putting your people first is what’s most important for any leader. I would have thought less of you if you hadn’t put up much of a fight!” The young women shared a laugh.

A bit away, Link stood with growing unease in his stomach. The suggestion of evil under the castle had brought back memories of his first brush with Calamity Ganon’s malice. The gleam of the corrupted Guardian’s eye still haunted him on dark nights, bringing with it what he could recall of the pain before everything went black. Like Zelda, he was stronger and wiser now. Together they had taken down Calamity Ganon. But this new threat… The nightmares and feelings that suggested it wasn’t over; that it was only beginning… Link hoped they had grown strong enough to face whatever “truth” lay under the castle.

#

The bullbo reminded Link of the water buffalo found in the southern grasslands. However, it was much thicker in body with a pair of wide-set horns and a long tail. It stood taller than the two Hylians, but stirrups helped Zelda and Riju onto its back while Link held the reins. He had noticed the horn tips were filed down, yet it seemed to be only a perfunctory measure as the beast was docile enough. 

“It is stubborn, however,” Riju warned as she, Zelda, and Link set out across the desert. “If it comes to a point where the beast refuses to go further, you’d do better to leave it behind than waste your energy forcing it forward. Fortunately, the cave system is linear and large enough to accommodate a bullbo, and an underground spring will provide you with water. The only real danger is all of the instability that comes with stone bridges and paths that have sat in a damp environment for millennia.”

_Not to mention whatever lies at the other end,_ Zelda thought to herself. Aloud she said, “It sounds as if you’ve been down there before, Chieftess.”

Riju nodded. “Before I was named my mother’s successor, I had to walk into the cave until my feet no longer carried me, meditate to regain my strength, and walk back. It was the easier part of my trials to become chieftess.” 

“And the harder part?” Zelda pressed, eyes glinting with interest. Riju laughed and fell into a colorful tale of battles, endurance trials, and the unique suffering that came with the day-long celebration of her crowning as the new chieftess. 

They spent the night at Kara Kara Bazaar. Only two beds were available, and because Riju refused to exercise her authority and force a traveler to sleep on the floor, she shared a bed with Zelda. The young women spent an hour talking in whispers pockmarked by stifled laughter until first Riju and then Zelda fell asleep. Only then did Link allow himself to relax, but he got little sleep thanks to his recurring nightmare. He didn’t have the benefit of a veil anymore to hide his exhaustion; he could tell Zelda wanted to chastise him for pushing himself too hard when he took hold of the bullbo’s reins to lead it. He kept his back to her and Riju with his head bowed down against the sand-laced wind.

They were nearly to the feet of the Gerudo Highlands when Riju called out for Link to stop. He did as asked, and the bullbo cleared its nose of sand behind his shoulders as Riju and Zelda slipped off of its back. The chieftess beckoned Link to follow. “You should see this, too.”

She led them to an alcove carved into a large rock that sat amongst eroded ruins. A small shrine took up much of the space – the effigy of a seated goddess with open palms held up and out. Beneath her spread arms was a hollow dug into the ground. The alcove was built to protect the shrine from most of the desert winds, thus some ash and burnt bones still remained in the hollow. 

Zelda knelt down before the hollow for a closer look, only to pull back with a gasp. She attempted to gain her feet but fell back. Link caught her by the shoulders and helped her to stand. “The bones…” she whispered, horrified. “They’re…”

“You tried to tell me no voe has been born into my tribe for generations.” Riju spoke in a low voice, her eyes fixed on the burnt remains. “Here is your first truth, Your Majesty. Fate is a funny thing. It doesn’t like to be denied. We can only try to circumvent it. In doing so, sometimes hard choices are made.” She closed her eyes and sighed. “The second-to-last voe who sat as king to our tribe nearly ended everything. We chanced one last king and… Well, you’ll see if you make it that far.”

Zelda tore herself out of Link’s steadying hands and headed back to the waiting bullbo. A sob trailed her and carried to Link’s ears, and he made to follow her. 

“Champion,” Riju called, and Link stopped. “You can’t protect her from everything.” Link nodded and took back his step. “Fate doesn’t like to be denied,” Riju repeated. “I dread the day when even our extreme measures won’t be enough. Something tells me that day isn’t too far away.”

“With all due respect, Queen Zelda has also taken extreme measures,” Link said. “She isn’t a stranger to sacrifice or pain. Perhaps you could be…”

“Be what?” Riju cut in when she heard Link hesitate. “Kinder? Gentler? Shall I weave her pretty stories like her wet-nurses did as she grew up pampered in the castle? She wanted to learn the truth. I’m fulfilling her request.” Riju walked away from the shrine, adding to Link as she did, “As I said, you can’t protect her from everything.”

“That doesn’t mean I shouldn’t try,” Link snapped before he could pull back his temper. “I vowed to defend her. I swore on the sacred sword on my back.”

Riju stopped and turned in place to face him. “Your loyalty is admirable,” she admitted. “But it’s already gotten you killed once. One day you may come up against something too powerful to defeat, and all the loyalty in the world won’t make a difference when your heart stops – for good, this time.”

“If I die protecting her, so be it,” Link said. “I won’t abandon her.”

“I’m not suggesting that,” Riju said with a wave of her hand. “You carry too much on your shoulders, Champion. It’s going to break you, and then you’ll be of no use to no one. Stop protecting her, and start _teaching_ her. She’s stronger than you know. Let her help you carry some of that weight.” Riju turned towards the distant bullbo. “Let’s go. I want to make the foothills before sundown.”

Link cast his eyes back at the tiny bones that littered the bottom of the shrine’s hollow. He took a moment to calm his breathing and temper, then followed Riju’s smaller footsteps across the hot sand.


	3. In Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zelda and Link take their first steps into the underground passage.

### Chapter Three: In Time

There were no more stops during the last leg of the journey to the foothills. Link focused on keeping the bullbo moving forward. Riju and Zelda, riding atop the beast, stayed hidden behind the scarves that protected their faces from the sand-laced wind. That same wind twisted Link’s cloak around his waist and yanked at his hair. He understood now why Zelda had cut her locks before embarking on their journey. Briefly, he wondered how well the Master Sword would cut through his hair. Or perhaps an ancient arrow’s blade. He dismissed the thoughts almost at once. He had always had his long hair. He wanted to keep it that way – even if he couldn’t remember why he liked the style.

The sun was a dimming glow at their backs when the party drew up to the Gerudo Highlands. It was a sliver of red on the horizon when Riju called for Link to halt the bullbo. They took up shelter in the lee of an eroded boulder that was once a part of the mountains. Near its bottom, Link spied a few fossilized shells set into the rock. He looked out over the desert they had crossed, imagining it all underwater, and his head spun at the seemingly impossible thought. 

Zelda slipped off of the bullbo in Riju’s wake and removed her scarf. “I don’t see an entrance,” she said after scanning the cliff face. 

Riju walked a bit away and knelt in the sand. “It is hidden. A magic seal was placed on it after our last king.”

Zelda frowned. “I thought it was the second-to-last king who attacked Hyrule.”

Riju said nothing. She buried her hands wrist-deep into the sand and fanned them out in search of something. Link watched her first find and then uncover a stone emblem set into the ground. It was the size and shape of a traveler’s shield, with text that looked like an older form of Gerudian lining the round edge. The emblem reminded Link of the warping emblems carved into the Sheikah towers, but when Riju placed her hand against this one the lettering flashed with green light instead of blue.

A crack of sound echoed up the mountains. Zelda gasped and turned towards its source, and Link moved in at once with sword drawn. A door was opening in the cliff face – a black mouth; and deep inside a faint blue light beckoned them.

Riju stood up, brushing sand from her hands. “You can put that away,” she said to Link with a nod at the Master Sword. He glanced between her and the cave entrance one final time before sheathing his weapon, however he remained standing between Zelda and the cave. “This is where I leave you,” Riju continued. “But first you must listen to me.”

Zelda turned to give Riju her full attention, and Link did the same after a final look at the cave. His mind was racing ahead, imagining all of the possible dangers both natural and unnatural. He forced himself to focus on Riju instead.

“As I said before, the path from here is straightforward, and for the most part it follows an underground stream. You may drink from it without fear of death or disease. The bullbo will need to drink often. You needn’t worry about feeding it so long as it has access to water. The beasts can go a month without food.”

Zelda forced a small smile to her lips. “Amazing. Link can barely go an hour.” It was a humorous exaggeration, and Link appreciated her trying to make light of the unknown they faced. The goosebumps that rose on his neck when the wind howled past the cave entrance didn’t allow him to enjoy the levity. 

After offering her own smile, Riju continued, “The blue glow you can see is from a type of rock called a timeshift stone. Under no circumstances should you strike them with any weapon, as they are volatile and can cast the surrounding area back into time.” Zelda’s eyes widened at that, and Link saw the curiosity in her gaze that drove so much of her research. Her hands twisted together, and he knew a hundred questions sat on her tongue. Then the princess’s strength and resolve won back control, and she settled her shifting feet. 

“For this reason,” Riju went on, “no Sheikah objects will work once you step into the cave. Something about the timeshift stones affects them in unpredictable ways, and it could be dangerous to use any of the Sheikah’s ancient weaponry or devices.”

Zelda’s face fell at that, and from its sling on her hip she pulled out the Sheikah slate; Link had returned it to her upon Calamity Ganon’s defeat. She ran a hand almost lovingly over the slate’s dormant face before holding it out to Riju. “Then, if you don’t mind, could you hang on to this for me? The temptation to use it would be too great.”

“Of course,” Riju agreed, and she took the slate from Zelda. “I don’t know what waits for you at the end of this path. I have only stories and warnings, and none of them are precise. The only thing I do know is that it’s dangerous for you to go… but at the same time, it may be just as dangerous – perhaps more so – if you don’t learn the truth.” She took hold of Zelda’s hands. “Please come back safe, Princess Zelda. And you, Link.” She cast a smile at him. “Take care of each other. I look forward to hearing what you’ve learned when you return.”

“We’ll be back with a full report,” Zelda promised, her fingers tightening around Riju’s. On an unspoken cue they pressed their foreheads together, eyes closed, and Riju murmured a prayer for safe travels. The chieftess remained in sight within the cave’s mouth as Zelda and Link disappeared into it; only fading from view when distance and sand erased her. 

After hours of traveling in the heat and biting sand, it was at first a relief to experience the underground path’s cooler air. The timeshift stones – those that weren’t a dormant purple – cast enough soft blue light to reveal several feet of the path ahead as well as the surrounding cave structure. Caverns widened and shrunk around them -- the walls sometimes claustrophobically close; other times so far away that not even the stones’ light reached them. 

But the hours stretched, the cool air turned cold, and rats squeaked in the dark. When one grew close enough to draw a scream from Zelda, Link stopped the bullbo and lit the torches set on either side of its saddle. The fire kept away the rats and most of the cold, and within their warm light atop the bullbo Zelda found herself dozing. She jerked awake when the path – thus far straight – took a sharp turn. The walls drew away once again, revealing the first of what would be many ruins they would find on their journey.

Zelda sucked in a sharp breath when crumbled pillars and broken archways caught her eyes. At once her hand dropped to her hip where the Sheikah slate rested in its sling. Only it wasn’t there, and a momentary panic took over her until she remembered Riju had the slate for safekeeping. With a grunt of frustration, Zelda pulled the right torch free and slid off of the bullbo’s back. “I wonder who built all this,” she said as she walked to the closest structure. The flames outlined the stonework’s edges, and Zelda fell to searching for some architectural tell that would tie it to one race or another. “Link, in my bag there’s a notebook and quill. Could you –” 

Zelda stopped. She had turned to address Link and found him staring down the path with a glazed expression. She took in the slight waver of his posture – usually straight and proud – and watched a yawn overtake him. Guilt spiked in her gut, and Zelda returned to the bullbo. Her light hand on Link’s shoulder jerked him out of his weary reverie. “Let’s rest,” she suggested.

Link straightened his sagging shoulders and nodded his chin at the bullbo. “His back is wide enough to sleep on. I’ll try to stay on flat ground so that you can sleep…”

Zelda was shaking her head before Link could finish. “We both need sleep – you more so than I. You’re always forgetting you’re not immortal, Link. Come on.” She moved to the bullbo’s side and began to undo the knots that held closed the camping gear. “Our destination isn’t going anywhere.”

“I’m fine, my queen,” Link argued, but he helped Zelda lay out the blankets alongside the bullbo once it had settled onto its stomach; and when they lay down – with a respectful space between themselves – he was asleep within minutes.

Once again Zelda wished she had the Sheikah slate, if only to be able to take one picture of Link’s relaxed expression. It was a sight she never saw before Calamity Ganon, and had only glimpsed since their reunion. He never allowed himself to be at ease around her, so she treasured the rare moments when she caught him off-guard or was able to study him in secret. Zelda was sure that – with enough patience – a day would come when she would no longer need to steal these opportunities. Perhaps once this nightmare business was behind them…

As the word crossed her mind, Link’s brow folded into the wrinkles Zelda knew well. His body curled up in a defensive position, and his right hand convulsively moved to grip his left shoulder. Zelda recalled what lay under the proud blue of the Champion Tunic. She had seen the shiny and ragged scars only once, by chance, when Link changed his shirt a week ago. Remnants of old burns from the Guardians’ light beams, and deep cuts from their clawed appendages. The very wounds that had robbed Link of his life a hundred years ago. If it hadn’t been for the Master Sword…

A whimper slipped away from Link, and his fingers dug into his shoulder. Putting propriety aside, Zelda worked her hand into his free one and pressed herself flush to Link’s back. She lay with her arm around him until the tremors left his body and his breathing eased into that of a gentler sleep.

#

Perhaps it was fitting that on a path lined with timeshift stones, time lost all meaning. Zelda tried to keep track of the hours and days, but it quickly became a futile effort. If not for the occasional cave opening high above that let in sunlight she would have forgotten the passing of days existed outside of the caverns. They stopped only when hunger urged them to pause, or when Zelda decided that she and Link needed sleep. Link ceased arguing with her after their third break for rest. He spoke even less now, and nightmares continued to punctuate his sleep.

Zelda, oddly, hadn’t experienced any nightmares since setting foot into the passage. Nonetheless she felt on edge whenever she tried to rest. It was as if the jaws of a trap were pulled ready around her, eager to snap shut when she least expected it. Something was waiting for her to make a wrong move – or a right one – and she feared what consequences her actions could unleash. A hundred years ago Link had suffered on her behalf, and Hyrule had rotted in her subsequent absence. She wasn’t sure either one could survive another calamity. 

#

Another night – or perhaps day – and another round of nightmares were wracking Link’s sleep. Zelda watched his jaw stiffen, his legs jerk, and his fingers twitch. When she saw his lips pull back in a grimace – revealing clenched teeth – alarm flashed through her. She stretched out a hand and shook his shoulder, calling his name. 

Link pulled free of her grip with a gasp. His eyes took her in with momentary bewilderment before tightening in pain. He scrambled to his feet, a strangled cry in his throat, and ran for the streambank with an arm clutched to his chest. Zelda rose and followed him. She reached the stream in time to watch Link plunge his right arm into the water with such force that water splashed up around him and wetted her feet. She jumped back in surprise, but moved back in at once to kneel beside him, throwing an arm around his back.

Link was gasping for breath. His left hand held his right arm down beneath the water as if out of fear that it would leap up and attack him. Zelda knew better than to pry and coddle, so she waited until he was ready to speak. Eventually, Link’s grip relaxed and he raised his arm out of the water. He flexed his right hand a few times while his sleeve dripped water back into the stream. “I’m sorry – I had a nightmare. My arm was bright and hot… I could have sworn it was on fire.” Link’s arms relaxed against his folded legs. “I’m sorry,” he repeated. 

“It’s all right,” Zelda assured him. “I’m just glad you’re okay. These nightmares have been so rough on you…” She trailed off when guilt spiked in her gut over her recent, dreamless rests. 

Link nodded in agreement before raising a hand to his chest. “My heart is still pounding.”

Zelda knew, for she could feel it against the arm she had around Link, and she was startled to find her heart matched its rhythm. Only it wasn’t just her heart. She could feel a faint thrumming in the ground beneath her knees, and although Link’s arm no longer dripped into the stream there was a noticeable tremor on the water’s surface that accompanied each throb. Her and Link’s eyes were drawn together to the passage that stretched ahead of their temporary camp. Distantly, almost lost against the glow of the timeshift stones, a glint of green light pulsed in time with their heartbeats.


End file.
